Landry II Locked Out of Locker Room, Plays Anyway

[Doomsday 4,130]

Landry II Locked Out of Locker Room, Plays Anyway

 

HALIFAX - In the world of hockey, hazing has come to be a generally accepted part of a rookie's initiation into the league. Most fans do not get the chance to see most of it, as much of it occurs behind closed doors, away from the ignorant public. For many, hazing begins and ends with the rookie being sent out for the warm-up skate alone before the rest of the team eventually joins them. However, for Thomas Landry II, a VHLM prospect recently signed to the Halifax 21st, his experience with hazing went a step further: he was actually locked out of the team's locker room leading up to and just before puck drop in his first VHLM game, a 3-2 Halifax win over the Minnesota Storm.

 

"It was a pretty bizarre situation," said Landry following the game. "I was already anticipating being sent out for a skate, but this way by far the most elaborate prank I've seen."

 

Landry's status as a dual citizen of the United States and Canada did not affect his status to travel with the team, but joining a team in the middle of the season creates plenty of opportunities for glitches in the Matrix to pop out. While he was on the roster for Halifax's 6-5 loss to Minnesota in their previous game, Landry was listed as a scratch due to his inability to physically enter the arena since he was not listed with the team's roster. Despite being on the roster (and being announced as a scratch prior to the game), Landry had to catch the game as just another fan would: in the seats.

 

 

"That was a very unfortunate situation," said Halifax's general manager, Michael Johnson. "We had everything ready to go, but it looks like an outdated roster got sent to Minnesota for the game, one that didn't include Landry. We felt terrible for the kid, but we handled it as best we could, making sure we at least got him inside to watch his new teammates play for the first time and cheer them on. During the game, we made sure that an updated list was ready back home so that he could join us on the ice this time."

 

Landry's name was indeed on the list, but another crucial detail had been overlooked: he didn't have access to the locker room.

 

"I was able to get into the arena this time, but I didn't have any locker room clearances yet," explained Landry. "I could get into the arena, just not into the locker room where my equipment was. I was going to have to find a different way to access it."

 

Find a different way he certainly did, which few, if any, fans actually noticed.

 

 

"I already had some team apparel and my skates, which made me look close enough to our ice crew that I could pass as one. I just grabbed a shovel, went out with them, and nobody was any the wiser."

 

The one exception, of course, was Assistant General Manager Jeff Downey, a family friend of the Landry family and a pivotal reason that Landry II had decided to sign with Halifax.

 

"I saw a member of the ice crew out there, which was odd because it was pre-game warm-ups," chucked Downey after the game. "The players are out there warming up and here's this guy out there with a shovel, just going through the motions and putting pucks in the net. He got close enough and I realized it was Thomas. I asked him what in the hell he was doing, but after he explained that he was locked out, I made sure he had access from that point on."

 

With that, the VHLM career of Thomas Landry II was officially under way. After rejoining the 21st in his correct gear for what remained of warm-ups, he returned to the locker room with his teammates for the first time. After the victory, in which Landry tallied two hits and served two penalty minutes for high sticking, things suddenly felt normalized to the young left wing.

 

"Let's hope next time I can just catch a ride here and not have to sneak onto the ice as mascot," Landry laughed.

 

Jethro Novacek is a writer for the MSFL Times, a quality writing establishment that has probably existed longer than several VHL members. He enjoys doing the Summersboy, signing Greta Thunberg up for every publicly listed snail mail there is and arming teenagers with recreational McNukes.

 

DISCLAIMER: I am not actually locked out of the team's locker room. I have been added to the team's Discord channel safely and I have not had to impersonate anyone other than a real life hockey player.